§ 236. Public television and radio. 1. Short title. This section shall\nbe known and may be cited as the "Public Television and Radio Act of\nnineteen hundred seventy-eight".\n 2. Legislative findings and declaration of intent. In the years since\nNew York state's educational television act was passed in nineteen\nhundred fifty-four, public television in New York has made enormous\nstrides. Audiences which only a decade ago were calculated in the\nthousands now number in the millions. Approximately seven million New\nYork residents now view public television every week. Public television,\nwhich initially served only a handful of students, now brings nearly ten\nthousand hours annually of the best of the state's and the nation's\neducational programming to over one million two hundred thousand\nstudents in three thousand schools throughout the state. These programs\nare used by approximately fifty thousand teachers for direct classroom\ninstruction. Public television also provides the state's youngsters with\nsome twelve thousand hours annually of the finest children's programming\navailable including "Sesame Street", "Electric Company", "Zoom" and "Mr.\nRogers Neighborhood". In addition, public television provides a wealth\nof specialized programming in the educational and cultural arts designed\nfor viewing by, among others, minority and ethnic populations, senior\ncitizens, the unemployed, consumers and citizens interested in the\nperforming arts. It is the sense of the legislature that public\ntelevision's contributions to the people of New York state have been\nexceptional. Despite public broadcasting's great progress in New York\nstate in recent years, its full potential remains untapped. It is,\ntherefore, the intent of the legislature both to maintain and, expand\nthe role of public broadcasting in supplying educational, instructional\nand cultural programs to New Yorkers, as well as to enhance the state's\nrole in its partnership with its citizens so that this valuable state\nresource can be nurtured to its optimum potential.\n 3. Public television and radio corporations; creation and operation.\na. The board of regents may incorporate any group, institution or\nassociation for the purpose of constructing, owning, operating or\nmaintaining a non-profit and noncommercial public television station or\npublic television and/or radio station for providing educational\ntelevision and radio programs. Any such corporation shall be subject to\nall the provisions applicable to corporations created by the board of\nregents and, in addition, shall be subject to the provisions of this\nsection.\n b. The charter of any such corporation may be amended from time to\ntime, suspended, or revoked, upon the regents' own motion, after notice\nand an opportunity to be heard, before the board of regents or a\ncommittee thereof or a hearing officer designated by the board of\nregents.\n c. Each such corporation and all its operations and the powers and\nduties of its trustees and officers shall be subject to the general\nsupervision and control of the board of regents and to such rules as the\nboard of regents may adopt and promulgate from time to time with respect\nto such corporations.\n d. The television programs developed and presented by such\ncorporations shall consist of educational, instructional and cultural\nprograms.\n e. The appointment or election of any trustee of such corporation\nshall be subject to approval by the regents while under regents' charter\nand through the first five years of broadcast operations. The regents\nmay reinstitute requirements for trustee approval over a reasonable\nperiod on finding a corporation in violation of an applicable rule,\nregulation or law. After the expiration of rule requirements,\ncorporations shall include a list of current trustees in its annual\nreport.\n f. The regents may remove any trustee, officer or employee of such\ncorporation for misconduct, incapacity, wilful violati
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